Geolocationing system and method for use of same

ABSTRACT

A geolocationing system and method for providing awareness in a multi-space environment, such as a hospitality environment or educational environment, are presented. In one embodiment of the geolocationing system, a vertical and horizontal array of gateway devices is provided. Each gateway device includes a gateway device identification providing an accurately-known fixed location within the multi-space environment. Each gateway device includes a wireless transceiver that receives a beacon signal from a proximate wireless-enabled personal locator device. The gateway devices, in turn, send gateway signals to a server, which determines estimated location of the wireless-enabled personal locator device.

PRIORITY STATEMENT & CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.17/130,134 entitled “Geolocationing System and Method for Use of Same”filed on Dec. 22, 2020, in the names of Thomas R. Miller, et al., nowU.S. Pat. No. 11,284,123 issued on Mar. 22, 2022; which is acontinuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 16/731,394 entitled,“Geolocationing System and Method for Use of Same”, filed on Dec. 31,2019 in the names of Thomas R. Miller, et al., now U.S. Pat. No.10,873,767 issued on Dec. 22, 2020; which claims priority from U.S.Patent Application Ser. No. 62/787,412 entitled “Geolocationing Systemand Method for Use of Same” filed on Jan. 2, 2019, in the name ofWilliam C. Fang; which is hereby incorporated by reference, in entirety,for all purposes. application Ser. No. 16/731,394 is also acontinuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/201,783entitled “Set-Top Box, System and Method for Providing Awareness in aHospitality Environment” filed on Nov. 27, 2018, in the names of VanessaOgle et al., now U.S. Pat. No. 10,602,196 issued on Mar. 24, 2020; whichis a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/652,622entitled “Set-Top Box, System and Method for Providing Awareness in aHospitality Environment” filed on Jul. 18, 2017, in the names of VanessaOgle et al., now U.S. Pat. No. 10,142,662 issued on Nov. 27, 2018; whichis a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/165,851entitled “Set-Top Box, System and Method for Providing Awareness in aHospitality Environment” filed on May 26, 2016, in the names of VanessaOgle et al., now U.S. Pat. No. 9,712,872 issued on Jul. 18, 2017; whichis a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/461,479entitled “Set-Top Box, System and Method for Providing Awareness in aHospitality Environment” filed on Aug. 18, 2014, in the names of VanessaOgle et al., now U.S. Pat. No. 9,357,254 issued on May 31, 2016; whichclaims priority from U.S. Patent Application Ser. No. 61/935,862entitled “System and Method for Providing Awareness in a HospitalityEnvironment” and filed on Feb. 5, 2014, in the name of Vanessa Ogle; allof which are hereby incorporated by reference, in entirety, for allpurposes.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates, in general, to geolocationing and, inparticular, to enhanced performance in systems and methods for providingawareness and safety in a multi-room environment such as a hospitalityenvironment, educational environment, or the like.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Without limiting the scope of the present invention, the background willbe described in relation to employee safety in hospitality environments,as an example. Employees face increased personal security risks at workin multi-room environments such as hospitality environments, whichinclude motels, hotels, and the like, for example. Such hospitalityindustry employees often work alone and range over large interior areasthat may be divided into many small, closed spaces. As a result oflimited existing security measures, there is a need for improved systemsand methods of providing awareness and safety in hospitalityenvironments.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It would be advantageous to achieve systems and methods for providinggeolocationing in a multi-room environment such as a hospitalityenvironment, educational environment, or the like that would improveupon existing limitations in functionality. It would be desirable toenable an electrical engineering-based and software solution that wouldprovide enhanced awareness and safety in an easy-to-use platform in thehospitality lodging industry or in another environment. To betteraddress one or more of these concerns, a geolocationing system andmethod for use of the same are disclosed.

In one embodiment of the geolocationing system, a vertical andhorizontal array of gateway devices is provided. Each gateway deviceincludes a gateway device identification providing an accurately-knownfixed location within the multi-space environment. Each gateway deviceincludes a wireless transceiver that receives a beacon signal from aproximate wireless-enabled personal locator device. The gateway devices,in turn, send gateway signals to a server, which determine estimatedlocation of the wireless-enabled personal location. These and otheraspects of the invention will be apparent from and elucidated withreference to the embodiments described hereinafter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of the features and advantages of thepresent invention, reference is now made to the detailed description ofthe invention along with the accompanying figures in which correspondingnumerals in the different figures refer to corresponding parts and inwhich:

FIG. 1A is schematic building diagram depicting one embodiment of ageolocationing system for providing awareness in a multi-roomenvironment illustrated as a hotel, according to the teachings presentedherein;

FIG. 1B is a schematic floor plan depicting a floor of the hotelpresented in FIG. 1A in further detail;

FIG. 1C is a schematic floor plan depicting a floor of the hotelpresented in FIG. 1A during an alert event;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram depicting one embodiment of thegeolocationing system presented in FIG. 1A providing enhanced awarenessand safety functionality therewith according to the teachings presentedherein;

FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram depicting one embodiment of apersonal location device depicted in FIG. 2 in further detail;

FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram depicting another embodiment of apersonal location device depicted in FIG. 2 in further detail;

FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram depicting one embodiment of agateway device, a set-top box, presented in FIG. 1A;

FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram depicting one embodiment of agateway device, a gateway service devices, presented in FIG. 1A;

FIG. 7 is a functional block diagram depicting one embodiment of theserver presented in FIG. 2;

FIG. 8A is a data processing diagram depicting one embodiment of thegeolocationing system according to the teachings presented herein;

FIG. 8B is a schematic diagram depicting one embodiment of thegeolocationing system presented in FIG. 8A; and

FIG. 9 is a flow chart depicting one embodiment of a method forproviding a gateway device furnishing enhanced safety according to theteachings presented herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

While the making and using of various embodiments of the presentinvention are discussed in detail below, it should be appreciated thatthe present invention provides many applicable inventive concepts, whichcan be embodied in a wide variety of specific contexts. The specificembodiments discussed herein are merely illustrative of specific ways tomake and use the invention, and do not delimit the scope of the presentinvention.

Referring initially to FIGS. 1A, 1B, 1C and 2, therein is depicted ageolocationing system for providing awareness in a multi-spaceenvironment such as a hospitality environment, which may be embodied asa furnished multi-family residence, dormitory, lodging establishment,hotel, hospital, which is schematically illustrated and designated 10.The multi-space environment may also be a multi-unit environment such asan educational environment like a school or college campus, for example.More generally, the geolocationing system 10 and the teachings presentedherein are applicable to any multi-space environment includinghospitality environments, educational campuses, hospital campuses,office buildings, multi-unit dwellings, sport facilities and shoppingmalls, for example.

As shown, by way of example and not by way of limitation, themulti-space environment is depicted as a hotel H having a lobby andfloors F, which are appropriately labeled the 2^(nd) floor through the10^(th) floor. Further, by way of example, the 4^(th) floor is depictedwith rooms 401, 402, 403, 404, 405, 406, 407, 411, 412, 413, 414, 415,416, and 417. Additionally, a common area near the elevators is labeledE, a hallway labeled P, and a stairwell is labeled S. The lobby, thecommon area E, the hallway P, and the stairwell S are furtherillustrations of spaces in the multi-space environment in addition tothe rooms.

Gateway devices 12 are deployed as part of a horizontal and verticalarray, which is generally a spatial array, throughout the hotel H. Itshould be appreciated, however, that the gateway devices 12 and moregenerally deployment of the system 10 may include a horizontal array.Further, the deployment may be in a single story, multiple stories, or acombination thereof. As will be discussed in further detail hereinbelow,the gateway devices 12 may include set-top boxes 14, a gateway servicedevice 16, or a common space gateway device 18.

Individuals, such as I₁, I₂, I₃, carry proximate wireless-enabledpersonal locator devices 20 which periodically, or on demand, transmitbeacons that are received by a gateway device 12. The proximatewireless-enabled personal locator devices 20 may be a single buttonpersonal locator device or a proximate wireless-enabled interactiveprogrammable device, such as a smart watch, a smart phone, or a tabletcomputer, for example. In one embodiment, the proximate wireless-enabledinteractive programmable device 20 may be a wireless-enabled smart andinteractive handheld device that may be supplied or carried by the useror guest. As shown individual I₁ works in the hospitality industry athotel H and is presently working on the 4^(th) floor. As the individualI₁ is working in room 404, the proximate wireless-enabled personallocator device 20 is transmitting beacons that are received by gatewaydevices 12, such as the set-top box 14 that is located within the room404 and the gateway service device 16 located in hallway P on the 4^(th)floor of the hotel H.

As shown, the gateway device 12 in the room 404 is a set-top box 14,which may be connected to an electronic visual display device such as adisplay or television. The set-top box 14 may be an informationappliance device that generally contains a TV-tuner as well as contentinput and display outputs. The set-top box 14 may be communicativelydisposed with various amenities associated with the multi-spaceenvironment H as well as the system 10 providing a geolocation andsafety network. The gateway device 12 in the hallway P of the 4th flooris a gateway service device 16 and a common space gateway device 18 isalso in the hallway of the 4th floor. The gateway service device 16 maybe communicatively disposed with various amenities associated with themulti-space environment H as well as the system 10 providing thegeolocation and safety network. The common space gateway device 18 mayinclude a limited set of functionality as compared to the gatewayservice device 16. The limited functionality, however, includesconnectivity to the system 10 providing the geolocation and safetynetwork. Gateway devices, like the gateway device 12, including theset-top box 14, the gateway service device 16, and the common spacegateway device 18 may be deployed throughout the spaces, rooms, andother areas of the hotel H or multi-space environment.

As mentioned, each of the gateway devices 12, including the set-topboxes 14, the gateway service devices 16, and the common space gatewaydevices 18, have a data link via a network 22 to a server 24 which isproviding a geolocation and safety network. In one implementation, anindividual I₂ has the proximate wireless-enabled personal locator device20, which may transmit a beacon signal B from the proximatewireless-enabled personal locator device 20 using a wireless standardsuch as Wi-Fi to the gateway devices 12. Each of the gateway devices 12,including the set-top box 14 and the gateway service device 16, thenprocesses the received beacon signal B and sends a gateway signal to theserver 24. The server 24 receives the gateway signals and uses multiplegateway signals for determining the estimated location of the proximatewireless-enabled personal locator device 20 of the individual I₂. Theserver 24, in turn, sends out the appropriate notifications to variousphones 26, activates alarms 28, or notify others via a computer 30,depending on the situation. As a spatial array of horizontal andvertical gateway devices 12 are provided, the server 24 and system 10presented herein is able to determine the location of the individualassociated with the proximate wireless-enabled personal locator device20 within a building. As particularly illustrated in FIGS. 1C and 2, theindividual I₂ is need of emergency assistance and activates theproximate wireless-enabled personal locator device 20. In oneimplementation, beacon signals B are received by all nearby gatewaydevices 12, which in turn forward gateway signals to the server 24 forprocessing and determining the estimated location. The estimatedlocation includes which floor F the individual is presently located aswell as the room or common area E and the presence of a status or analarm, such as Alarm A. In one embodiment, this information may begenerated by the server 24 in the form of a map view 32, which includesa graphical representation of the multi-space environment that isannotated with the estimated location of the proximate wireless-enabledpersonal locator device 20.

Referring to FIG. 3, the proximate wireless-enabled personal locatordevice 20 may be a wireless communication device of the type includingvarious fixed, mobile, and/or portable devices. To expand rather thanlimit the previous discussion of the proximate wireless-enabledinteractive programmable device 20, such devices may include, but arenot limited to, cellular or mobile telephones, two-way radios, personaldigital assistants, digital music players, Global Positioning Systemunits, tablet computers, smartwatches, and so forth. The proximatewireless-enabled interactive programmable device 20 may include aprocessor 40, memory 42, storage 44, and a transceiver 46 interconnectedby a busing architecture 48 that also supports a display 50, I/O panel52, and a camera 54. It should be appreciated that although a particulararchitecture is explained, other designs and layouts are within theteachings presented herein.

In operation, the teachings presented herein permit a proximatewireless-enabled interactive programmable device 20 such as a smartphone or simple transmitter to communicate with a set-top box 14 that isable to relay an alert with location information to a server 24 andsecurity or other individuals needing to know about the emergency. Inone operational embodiment being described, the proximatewireless-enabled interactive programmable device 20 may be “paired” on atemporary basis to the set top/back box 14 on a room-by-room basis,whereby the pairing changes as the hospitality employees locationchanges. As shown, the proximate wireless-enabled interactiveprogrammable device 20 includes the memory 42 accessible to theprocessor 40 and the memory 42 includes processor-executableinstructions that, when executed, cause the processor 40 to send beaconsignals B. The proximate wireless-enabled interactive programmabledevice 20 may on-demand or periodically transmit the beacon signal Bincluding a data packet, the programmable device identification, as wellas a mode of operation identification.

Referring to FIG. 4, with respect to the simplified proximatewireless-enabled interactive programmable device 20, a processor 60,memory 62, storage 64, and a transceiver 66 are supported by aninterconnected busing architecture 68. An emergency button 70 providesthe activation that triggers the alert. As shown, the proximatewireless-enabled interactive programmable device 20 includes the memory62 accessible to the processor 60 and the memory 62 includesprocessor-executable instructions that, when executed, cause theprocessor 60 to send beacon signals B. The proximate wireless-enabledinteractive programmable device 20 may on-demand or periodicallytransmit the beacon signal B including a data packet having theprogrammable device identification as well as a mode of operationidentification. In one embodiment, responsive to the activation of theemergency button 70, the proximate wireless-enabled interactiveprogrammable device 20 immediately transmits a beacon signal B includinga data packet having the programmable device identification as well as amode of operation identification, i.e., an emergency alert.

Referring to FIG. 5, as used herein, set-top boxes, back boxes andset-top/back boxes may be discussed as set-top boxes. By way of example,the set-top box 14 may be a set-top unit that is an informationappliance device that generally contains set-top box functionalityincluding having a television-tuner input and displays output through aconnection to a display or television set and an external source ofsignal, turning by way of tuning the source signal into content in aform that can then be displayed on the television screen or otherdisplay device. Such set-top boxes are used in cable television,satellite television, and over-the-air television systems, for example.

The set-top box 14 includes a processor 80, memory 82, storage 84, andone or more transceivers 86 interconnected by a bus architecture 88within a mounting architecture that supports inputs 90 and outputs 92.It should be understood that the processor 80, the memory 82, thestorage 84, the inputs 90, and the outputs 92 may be entirely containedwithin the housing or the housing-dongle combination. The processor 80may process instructions for execution within the computing device,including instructions stored in the memory 82 or in storage 84. Thememory 82 stores information within the computing device. In oneimplementation, the memory 82 is a volatile memory unit or units. Inanother implementation, the memory 82 is a non-volatile memory unit orunits. Storage 84 provides capacity that is capable of providing massstorage for the set-top box 14. Various inputs 90 and outputs 92 provideconnections to and from the computing device, wherein the inputs 90 arethe signals or data received by the set-top box 14, and the outputs 92are the signals or data sent from the set-top box 14. A televisioncontent signal input 94 and a television output 96 are also secured inthe housing in order to receive content from a source and forward thecontent, including external content such as cable and satellite andpay-per-view (PPV) programing, to the display.

The one or more transceivers 86 are associated with the set-top box 14and communicatively disposed with the bus architecture 88. As shown thetransceivers 86 may be internal, external, or a combination thereof tothe housing. Further, the transceivers 86 may be a transmitter/receiver,receiver, or an antenna for example. Communication between variousdevices and the set-top box 14 may be enabled by a variety of wirelessmethodologies employed by the transceivers 86, including 802.11, 3G, 4G,Edge, WiFi, ZigBee, near field communications (NFC), Bluetooth lowenergy and Bluetooth, for example. Also, infrared (IR) may be utilized.

The memory 82 and storage 84 are accessible to the processor 80 andinclude processor-executable instructions that, when executed, cause theprocessor 80 to execute a series of operations. With respect to theprocessor-executable instructions, the processor 80 is caused to receiveand process a beacon signal B including a personal location deviceidentification. More particularly, the processor-executable instructionscause the processor 80 to receive a beacon signal B via the wirelesstransceiver from a proximate wireless-enabled personal locator device20. The processor-executable instructions then cause the processor 80 tomeasure received signal characteristic of the beacon signal B. Theinstructions may then cause the processor 80 to generate a gatewaysignal including the personal location device identification, a gatewaydevice identification, and signal characteristics indicator, includingreceived signal characteristic. Finally, the instructions may cause theprocessor 96 to send the gateway signal to the server 24.

Referring to FIG. 6, the gateway device 12 may be a set-top unit that isan information appliance device that does not include television-tunerfunctionality and generally contains convenience and safetyfunctionality. The gateway service device 16 includes a processor 100,memory 102, storage 104, and transceivers 106 interconnected by a busarchitecture 108 within a mounting architecture that supports inputs 110and outputs 112. The processor 100 may process instructions forexecution within the computing device, including instructions stored inthe memory 102 or in storage 104. The memory 102 stores informationwithin the computing device. In one implementation, the memory 102 is avolatile memory unit or units. In another implementation, the memory 102is a non-volatile memory unit or units. Storage 104 provides capacitythat is capable of providing mass storage for the gateway device 12.Various inputs 110 and outputs 112 provide connections to and from thecomputing device, wherein the inputs 110 are the signals or datareceived by the gateway device 12, and the outputs 112 are the signalsor data sent from the gateway device 12.

One or more transceivers 106 may be associated with the gateway device12 and communicatively disposed with the bus architecture 108. Thetransceivers 106 may be internal, external, or a combination thereof tothe housing. Further, the transceivers 106 may be atransmitter/receiver, receiver, or an antenna for example. Communicationbetween various amenities in the hotel room and the gateway device 12may be enabled by a variety of wireless methodologies employed by thetransceivers 106, including 802.11, 802.15, 802.15.4, 3G, 4G, Edge,Wi-Fi, ZigBee, near field communications (NFC), Bluetooth low energy andBluetooth, for example. Also, infrared (IR) may be utilized.

The memory 102 and storage 104 are accessible to the processor 100 andinclude processor-executable instructions that, when executed, cause theprocessor 100 to execute a series of operations. With respect to theprocessor-executable instructions, the processor 100 is caused toreceive and process a beacon signal B including a personal locationdevice identification. More particularly, the processor-executableinstructions cause the processor 100 to receive a beacon signal B viathe wireless transceiver from a proximate wireless-enabled personallocator device 20. The processor-executable instructions then cause theprocessor 100 to measure a received signal characteristic of the beaconsignal B. The instructions may then cause the processor 100 to generatea gateway signal including the personal location device identification,a gateway device identification, and signal characteristics indicator.Finally, the instructions may cause the processor 100 to send thegateway signal to the server 24.

Referring now to FIG. 7, one embodiment of the server 24 as a computingdevice includes a processor 120, memory 122, storage 124, and one ormore network adapters 126 interconnected with various buses 128 in acommon or distributed, for example, mounting architecture, that supportsinputs 130 and outputs 132. In other implementations, in the computingdevice, multiple processors and/or multiple buses may be used, asappropriate, along with multiple memories and types of memory, as wellas multiple storages and types of storage. Further still, in otherimplementations, multiple computing devices may be provided andoperations distributed therebetween. The processor 120 may processinstructions for execution within the server 24, including instructionsstored in the memory 122 or in storage 124. The memory 122 storesinformation within the computing device. In one implementation, thememory 122 is a volatile memory unit or units. In anotherimplementation, the memory 122 is a non-volatile memory unit or units.Storage 124 includes capacity that is capable of providing mass storagefor the server 24. The various inputs 130 and outputs 132 provideconnections to and from the server 24, wherein the inputs 130 are thesignals or data received by the server 24, and the outputs 132 are thesignals or data sent from the server 24. The network adaptor 126 couplesthe server 24 to a network such that the server 24 may be part of anetwork of computers, a local area network (LAN), a wide area network(WAN), an intranet, a network of networks, or the Internet, for example.

The memory 122 and storage 124 are accessible to the processor 120 andinclude processor-executable instructions that, when executed, cause theprocessor 120 to execute a series of operations. In one embodiment ofprocessor-executable instructions, the processor-executable instructionscause the processor 120 to receive a plurality of gateway signals from aplurality of gateway devices of the vertical and horizontal array. Theprocessor 120 is caused to process the plurality of gateway signals anddetermine estimated location of the proximate wireless-enabled personallocator device 20. The processor 120 may also be caused to annotate thegraphical representation of the multi-space environment with location ofthe proximate wireless-enabled personal locator device 20, and annotatethe graphical representation of the room with the alert notification.

FIG. 8A illustrates one embodiment of signalization and data transfer.As shown, an interactive handheld device transmits data packet 150,which is a beacon signal B, including a device indicator 152 and a modeof operation indicator 154. The interactive handheld device alsotransmits data packet 156, which is a beacon signal B, including adevice indicator 158 and a mode of operation indicator 154. The datapackets 150, 156 are received by gateway devices; namely, set-top boxSTB-1 and set-top box STB-n. The gateway device STB-1 then establishesdata packet 162, including device indicator 152, mode of operationindicator 154, gateway device identification 164 (STB-1), and signalcharacteristic 166 (SC-1). Similarly, the gateway device STB-n thenestablishes data packet 168, including device indicator 158, mode ofoperation indicator 160, gateway device identification 170 (STB-n), andsignal characteristic 172 (SC-n).

The data packets 162, 168, which are gateway signals, are transmitted tothe server 24 and the server 24 analyzes the data packets 162, 168 anddetermines the estimated location of the proximate wireless-enabledinteractive programmable device 20. The server 24 then sends out signal174, which includes the estimated geolocation 176 and the appropriateaction 178.

FIG. 8B depicts one embodiment of a state diagram 180 of the states ofthe system 10, which include an alert mode of operation 182, a servicerequest mode of operation 184, and a tracking/non-tracking update modeof operation 186. As will be appreciated, the modes of operation mayoverlap or, to a partial or full extent be combined. In the alert modeof operation 182, a user of a proximate wireless-enabled interactiveprogrammable device 20 may send an alert to indicate distress. In theservice request mode of operation 184, the user may send a service alongwith the location information. The tracking/non-tracking update mode 186indicates the level of privacy the user expects and how much of thelocation history will be saved.

FIG. 9 depicts one embodiment of a method for providing safety in ahospitality environment or other environment, according to the teachingspresented herein. At block 200, the array of gateway devices is deployedvertically and horizontally throughout the hospitality environment. Atblock 202, beacon signals are periodically transmitted from personallocation devices and received by the gateway devices.

At block 204, the beacon signals are received and processed at thegateway device. The beacon signals may include a personal locationdevice identification corresponding to the device being employed by theuser. In one embodiment, signal strength between the beacon transmissionof the set-top boxes and the common area beacons at the proximatewireless-enabled interactive programmable device is measured. In otherembodiments, phase angle measurements or flight time measurements may beutilized. At block 206, broadcast signals are sent from the gatewaydevices to a server that is part of the geolocation and safety network.The broadcast signals may include the personal location deviceidentification, gateway device identification, and signal characteristicindicators. At block 208, the server receives and processes thebroadcast signals to determine an estimated location. At decision block210, the server takes action based on the mode of operation. In a firstmode of operation at block 212, a service request is associated with thelocation of the user utilizing the location of the proximatewireless-enabled personal locator device such as the proximatewireless-enabled interactive programmable device as a proxy. In a secondmode of operation at block 214, an emergency alert is sent andsubsequent notification (block 216) occurs. The emergency alert includesan indication of distress and the location of the user utilizing thelocation of the proximate wireless-enabled interactive programmabledevice as a proxy. In a third mode of operation at block 218, the map ofindividuals is updated with the location of the user with, if privacysettings being enabled, the system maintains the privacy of theindividual working in the hospitality environment such that the systemonly retains in memory the last known position and time of theuser-supplied wireless-enabled smart and interactive handheld device.Further, in this mode of operation, the system does not reveal thelocation of the individual and programmable device unless and until analert is issued.

The order of execution or performance of the methods and data flowsillustrated and described herein is not essential, unless otherwisespecified. That is, elements of the methods and data flows may beperformed in any order, unless otherwise specified, and that the methodsmay include more or less elements than those disclosed herein. Forexample, it is contemplated that executing or performing a particularelement before, contemporaneously with, or after another element are allpossible sequences of execution.

While this invention has been described with reference to illustrativeembodiments, this description is not intended to be construed in alimiting sense. Various modifications and combinations of theillustrative embodiments as well as other embodiments of the invention,will be apparent to persons skilled in the art upon reference to thedescription. It is, therefore, intended that the appended claimsencompass any such modifications or embodiments.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system for providing awareness in a multi-spaceenvironment, the system comprising: a vertical and horizontal array ofgateway devices, each gateway device being positioned within a space inthe multi-space environment, each gateway device having a gateway deviceidentification providing an accurately-known fixed location; and eachgateway device of the vertical and horizontal array including: ahousing, a wireless transceiver associated with the housing, a processorlocated within the housing and coupled to the wireless transceiver, anda memory accessible to the processor, the memory includingprocessor-executable instructions that, when executed, cause theprocessor to: receive a beacon signal via the wireless transceiver froma proximate wireless-enabled personal locator device, the beacon signalincluding a personal locator device identification, measure a signalcharacteristic of the beacon signal, and transmit a gateway signal to aserver, the gateway signal including the personal locator deviceidentification, the gateway device identification, and received signalstrength measurement.
 2. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein thewireless transceiver is configured to communicate with a standardselected from the group consisting of infrared (IR), 802.11, 3G, 4G,Edge, WiFi, ZigBee, near field communications (NFC), Bluetooth andBluetooth low energy.
 3. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein thegateway device further comprises a plurality of wireless transceivers.4. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the gateway device furthercomprises a set-top box.
 5. The system as recited in claim 1, whereinthe gateway device further comprises a common space gateway device. 6.The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the gateway device furthercomprises a gateway service device.
 7. The system as recited in claim 1,wherein the proximate wireless-enabled personal locator device furthercomprises a single button personal locator device.
 8. The system asrecited in claim 1, wherein the proximate wireless-enabled personallocator device further comprises a proximate wireless-enabledinteractive programmable device.
 9. The system as recited in claim 8,wherein the proximate wireless-enabled interactive programmable devicefurther comprises a device selected from the group consisting of smartwatches, smart phones, and tablet computers.
 10. The system as recitedin claim 1, wherein the server further comprises a back-office hotelserver in communication with the vertical and horizontal array ofgateway devices.
 11. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein theserver further comprises a cloud-based server in communication with thevertical and horizontal array of gateway devices.
 12. The system asrecited in claim 1, wherein the system further comprises an operationalmode selected from the group consisting of alerts-enabled, servicerequest-enabled, tracking-enabled, and non-tracking-enabled.
 13. Thesystem as recited in claim 12, wherein in the tracking-enabled mode, theserver maintains in memory a plurality of estimated locations withtimestamps associated with the proximate wireless-enabled personallocator device.
 14. The system as recited in claim 12, wherein in thenon-tracking-enabled mode, the server maintains in memory only the lastknown locations with timestamps associated with the proximatewireless-enabled personal locator device.
 15. The system as recitedclaim 1, wherein the system further comprises an operational mode ofalerts-enabled, wherein the proximate wireless-enabled personal locatordevice communicates a distress signal.
 16. The system as recited claim1, wherein the system further comprises an operational mode of servicerequest-enabled mode, wherein the proximate wireless-enabled personallocator device communicates a service request.
 17. A system forproviding awareness in a multi-space environment, the system comprising:an array of gateway devices, each gateway device being positioned withina space in the multi-space environment, each gateway device having agateway device identification providing an accurately-known fixedlocation; and each gateway device of the array including: a housing, awireless transceiver associated with the housing, a processor locatedwithin the housing and coupled to the wireless transceiver, and a memoryaccessible to the processor, the memory including processor-executableinstructions that, when executed, cause the processor to: receive abeacon signal via the wireless transceiver from a proximatewireless-enabled personal locator device, the beacon signal including apersonal locator device identification, measure a signal characteristicof the beacon signal, and transmit a gateway signal to a server, thegateway signal including the personal locator device identification, thegateway device identification, and received signal strength measurement.18. A system for providing awareness in a multi-space environment, thesystem comprising: an array of gateway devices, each gateway devicebeing positioned within a space in the multi-space environment, eachgateway device having a gateway device identification providing anaccurately-known fixed location; and each gateway device including: ahousing, a wireless transceiver associated with the housing, a processorlocated within the housing and coupled to the wireless transceiver, anda memory accessible to the processor, the memory includingprocessor-executable instructions that, when executed, cause theprocessor to: receive a beacon signal via the wireless transceiver froma proximate wireless-enabled personal locator device, the beacon signalincluding a personal locator device identification, measure a signalcharacteristic of the beacon signal, and transmit a gateway signal to aserver to determine an estimated location of the proximatewireless-enabled personal location device, the gateway signal includingthe personal locator device identification, the gateway deviceidentification, and received signal strength measurement.
 19. The systemas recited in claim 18, further comprising a tracking-enabled modewherein the server maintains in memory a plurality of estimatedlocations with timestamps associated with the proximate wireless-enabledpersonal locator device.
 20. The system as recited in claim 18, furthercomprising a non-tracking-enabled mode, wherein the server maintains inmemory only the last known locations with timestamps associated with theproximate wireless-enabled personal locator device.
 21. The system asrecited claim 18, further comprising an operational mode ofalerts-enabled, wherein the proximate wireless-enabled personal locatordevice communicates a distress signal.